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Two: Description of the Metres
2.6 Tuññhubha (Triùñubh), & Jagatã
Tuññhubha in the Canon occurs in basically three forms. In the early period Tuññhubha verses are used in the main independently. Only occasionally do we find Jagatã lines in the early verses, and then only as an expedient, as it were. 01 Later in the middle period we find that these two metres are frequently intermixed in composition, and at that point we might better describe the metre as being Tuññhubha-Jagatã. Later still these metres are replaced by their Classical counterparts Upajàti and Vaüsaññhà (described in 2.8 below).
As the variations that occur in the one also occur in the other, we can take the two metres together for description.
Tuññhubha normally has 11 syllables to the line, and is defined thus:
ÉÜÛÜÐÅÛÅÐÜÛÜé
Jagatã is similar, but has an extra light syllable in penultimate position, giving a line of 12 syllables, thus:
ÉÜÛÜÐÅÛÅÐÜÛÜÛé